Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) in Ohio
There are federal and Ohio state laws that protect consumers from malicious and unfair debt collection practices. Facing financial debt is hard enough without inappropriate communications and activities from creditors. The Federal Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) provides protection from a variety of abusive, deceptive and unfair debt collection practices by debt collectors. The FDCPA gives consumers legal protection from certain forms of debt collection methods, including:
- Calling at a location known to be inconvenient, such as your place of employment or during inappropriate hours (generally between 9:00pm and 8:00am);
- Calling after being informed that you have legal representation;
- Continued communication attempts by a creditor after being informed that an individual is unable to pay the debt;
- Use of physical or verbal threats or acts to collect debt;
- Publicizing or threatening to make public your debt delinquencies;
- Excessive calling with an intent to disturb or annoy;
- Making false representations that the caller is an attorney;
- Making false threats that failing to pay will result in an arrest, imprisonment or other taking of one’s property;
- Attempting to collect a debt via a postcard;
- Acquiring an individual’s location information from another person, while stating that he/she owes a debt in order to learn of your location; and
- Threatening to deposit, or depositing, a postdated check before the date written on the check.
These actions include only a few circumstances in which a debt collector may be liable for violations of the FDCPA. As there are limits on the amount of time one can file a claim for FDCPA violations, seeking legal representation as soon as possible if one believes his/her rights have been violated is recommended.
The Luftman, Heck and Associates Advantage
If you believe that your rights protected under the FDCPA are being violated, the attorneys at Luftman, Heck and Associates can help determine if you are legally entitled to protection under the act. Our attorneys are experienced at investigating claims against debt collectors whose activities violate FDCPA laws. Filling out the contact form is the first step in the process. A member of our Columbus or Cincinnati law firm will contact you directly to discuss your case in more detail and provide additional information about our services.
